Eternal
by sukesuke
Summary: HIATUS 'Attention listeners! A creature assumed to be a unnaturally large rabid dog or coyote is running loose, please stay inside until further notice. The police and Animal Control are working to find it. Don't panic' Daisuke is missing, look for him and you'll soon go missing too. [ZeroTwo. Rated for dark themes and violence. Light romance later on. Needs revising.]
1. Chapter 1

_Eternal_

The empty clicking of fingers upon keys reverberated throughout the heavy silence of the laboratory. A middle-aged man with unruly brown hair, coal-black eyes, and loose, baggy clothing sat calmly at a computer desk, a multitude of monitors and electronic equipment surrounding him. A low growling came from the back of the room.

"Hungry, boy?" the man chuckled. More growling was the only response he got. "Don't worry, you'll get to have your fun soon enough. I'm sure they'll come for you after all." More growling.

The man resumed his typing, sighing in appreciation as he completed his work.

"This outta work, I've copied the DNA patterns down to the finest hair. I'm sure your friends'll make fine subjects." The growling stopped, replaced with soft whines.

"Oh it's alright boy, they'll be in good hands. Just look at yourself!" From the shadows came a humanoid figure. It growled, revealing itself fully. It looked mostly human, a mop of unruly cinnamon brown hair and warm, chocolate brown eyes. A pair of goggles sat on its head. But extending from its hair were two pointed blue ears. A lithe blue tail trailed behind it. There were yellow marks, almost scar-like, ripping across its face.

"My masterpiece. You are very lucky, little one, to have been chosen for such a successful experiment." The creature flexed the long white claws adorning its hands and stared at the man in anger. It pulled fruitlessly at the chains bolting it to the wall.

"GGgrrghhHH…" the creature tried to speak, letting out only a trail of snarls instead. It blinked sadly, staring at its own claws.

"It's for the benefit of science." The man grinned. The boy only looked on sorrowfully, realizing the rest of its life was abolished…

* * *

"Has anyone seen Daisuke recently?" Miyako had called the team together to discuss Daisuke's absence as of late.

"No, actually. He's never missed a soccer practice in his life, but he wasn't there for the last two." Ken inquired, scratching the back of his head thoughtfully. Miyako absently noticed the fact the Iori was squirming uncomfortably being so close to Ken.

"Iori, come sit next to me." Miyako offered. Iori nodded gratefully and went to sit cross-legged next to Miyako on her bed. "This is a bit odd isn't it? No one's seen him; I tried to call his house but no one answered. Should we try going over there? Maybe he's sick or something?"

Takeru nodded. "That sounds like a good idea… I haven't heard from him either."

"Let's go then!" Hikari said, pumping her fist in the air. Miyako smiled.

"Okay, let's go. It isn't that late anyway."

* * *

Knock knock.

Mrs. Motomiya stopped abruptly. She left her rice to cook, and went to answer the door.

"Hello? Daisuke? Is that you sweetie?" the woman looked slightly disappointed to see the five children that were on the other side of the door. "Are you looking for Daisuke…?"

"Is that my 'Suke?" Mr. Motomiya came rushing from his study.

"No darling, its Daisuke's friends." Mrs. Motomiya answered, frowning softly.

"Oh. Hey kids! You seen 'Suke at all?" Mr. Motomiya obviously struggled to retain his cheery attitude.

"That's what we were going to ask you." Hikari answered.

Mr. Motomiya dropped the happy smile and let a troubled expression plaster itself on his face.

"I see." Miyako frowned at this.

"I'm sorry Mr. Motomiya." Iori whimpered, hugging himself helplessly.

"It's not your fault, Iori." Mrs. Motomiya comforted, resting a hand on Iori's shoulder. Iori smiled softly.

"I… I guess we'll just go then. There really isn't much else we can do." Miyako breathed, looking at her feet. Mr. and Mrs. Motomiya nodded, and the children left.

* * *

"Iori, are you fine going home by yourself? Your house is only a block away." Miyako glanced at the young boy next to her. "I can go with you if you want. It _is _starting to get dark now."

"I'm okay Miyako-san." Iori smiled at her, and then broke off in a run towards his home.

* * *

CLANG CLANG

Iori looked up, seeing the lid of a garbage can in a dark alley fall to the ground. What could have pushed it? It was probably just a stray cat, but Iori couldn't entirely extinguish his curiosity. Slowly, he crept towards the can; it was dark enough so that he couldn't see beyond it. Once he reached it, he quickly glanced behind it.

Nothing.

Iori shrugged and turned away, beginning to walk back to the sidewalk. A cold hand clamped itself over his mouth and nose, and an arm snaked around his middle. Desperately, Iori writhed against the person's grip, pulling at the hand covering his face, before finally running out of breath and falling unconscious.


	2. Chapter 2

CH2

"Hmm? Ah I see. It's about time; I've had that one's ready for awhile now. Bring it here as soon as you can. I'm eager to test my theory." The man hung up. He looked towards the back of the room that was still shrouded in darkness. A glimmer of moonlight snaked through the window and lay exposed on the floor. A long blue tail swept the ground in the light.

"See boy? I told you. You'll get to see them soon. Surely, if not you, they'll come for this one." The man smirked as the tail whipped back and forth angrily.

"Let me go!" screaming came from near the front of the lab.

"Ah, he's here." The man went and opened the door, revealing another man holding a small boy in his arms. The boy was thrashing wildly; his hands were tied behind his back. At the sight of the boy, the creature pulled its tail back in, and curled up in the shadows, silently begging not to be seen.

"Let me- aah!" the boy whimpered as he was dropped unceremoniously onto the cold stone floor.

"Quiet down little one. You're safe here, there's nothing to be afraid of." The man soothed, looming over the boy and expressing his eagerness to begin whatever it was he was going to do to this boy in his eyes.

"W-who are you…? Where is this?" the boy stammered, looking frantically around the room for a way out.

"You can call me Hero. I _am_ going to be your saving grace after all." Hero chuckled. The boy backed away, well, as well as he could with his hands tied.

"N-nyh!" Hero picked up the boy by his collar.

"Iori was it? Nice to meet you." Hero smirked. Iori squirmed under his intense glare.

"W-what are you going to do with me?" Iori grimaced under Hero's smirk.

"Nothing much. _Enhance_ you, to say the least." Iori squirmed some more, uncomfortably under the man's gaze. He idly took this silent moment to explore the room he was in with his eyes.

It was impressively large and the floors and walls were a glaring white, Iori wondered how 'Hero' had kept it hidden; he was seemed like some kind of kidnapper pedophile. The back of it was shrouded in darkness, only the window near the high ceiling letting in a splash of light. To the right, rows of large glass cylinders, like giant test tubes, sat neatly and precisely. There was a long, detailed control pad with tens of hundreds of different buttons littering it's surface. To the left, monitors and equipment was scattered around a messy work space filled with stacks of cluttered papers and files and piles upon piles of oddly colored orbs, discarded for some apparent reason. Only a few select orbs were positioned on white pedestals like treasured statues and veiled by thick, shatter-proof glass. They were obviously precious to the man.

Iori was suddenly aware of just how serious the situation was, it wasn't every day, after all, that he'd been kidnapped. This man could do practically anything to him and get away with it. It was obvious he had access to grunts that'd follow his every word without question. He was also an experienced scientist, judging by amount of expensive equipment and large stash of papers with information messily scribbled upon their surfaces.

What he had meant by 'enhance', Iori didn't have a clue. Hero put the boy down, still smirking.

"Do you know what those are, Iori?"Hero asked mockingly, gesturing to the glowing orbs behind the glass.

"No." Iori answered simply, very careful about what he said, not knowing what might set this man off. He also didn't want to reveal any information by mistake, kidnappers could be very persuasive and he wanted to be aware of every word he uttered in the presence of this man.

"Digieggs. Makeshift ones, yes, but they work just the same. Well, mostly the same, they'll be put to a _very_ different purpose then normal Digieggs after all." That could mean several things, Iori concluded. The fact hardly startled him; he had known that the orbs seemed familiar.

"And what would that purpose be?" Iori dared to ask, narrowing his eyes.

"It's a surprise~!" that sing-song voice made Iori flinch. "Now, where was I? Oh yes, I was going to introduce you to my special subject, but I think you'll get along more swimmingly _after _you've had your makeover."

"Whatever it is you're going to force on me, I won't go without struggle." Iori frowned. Surprisingly, Hero only let out a laugh.

"I assumed so. I guess one part of me hoped you'd go willingly. Too much to ask for I suppose." He chuckled.

"You just kidnapped me, and you want me to go with you willingly? You won't even tell me what it is you want from me! The reason behind nabbing me in a dark alley! Don't act dumb. Just because I'm small doesn't mean I'm an idiot." Iori would've crossed his arms is they hadn't been tied behind him.

"Feisty. I like it. It'll spice up the process~" Iori couldn't help but feel afraid of what Hero meant by 'process'. Whatever it was, Iori decided, he wasn't going to like it. Heck, the man could offer him a million dollars in cash and he wouldn't be happy about _being kidnapped._ The man treated him like a child.

"Ready?" Hero grinned.

"No." Iori, once again, stated stubbornly in his mind, _I won't go willingly._

"Not the answer I was looking for, but I guess it'll suffice." Hero unceremoniously yanked Iori by his arm towards the glass capsules. Iori stood his ground as long as he could, but his frail nine-year-old body wasn't a match for a well-worked adult man. Eventually, one way or another, he ended up at the entrance (which he hadn't noticed before) to the glass capsule farthest from the back.

"Go on. Step inside like a good little test subject." _Test subject. _Iori's hopes fell as it dawned upon him the reason why this building looked so much like a laboratory, like test facility. _Because it was._

Impatiently, Iori was shoved inside the capsule, and the door slide shut with a click. Iori kicked the glass desperately, though he knew he had no hope of getting out, seeing as, by the looks and texture of it, the tubes were made from the same glass they used in skyscrapers to protect against tornadoes.

Hero held up a finger, as if to say 'I'll be right back', and he walked off towards the other side of the building. He returned within seconds holding one of the makeshift Digiegg in his arms. The glass wasn't soundproof, Iori found, as he heard Hero clearly as he spoke.

"Now, I wasn't completely successful with yours, but I suppose this'll have to work. Your little body might not be able to handle anymore then this after all." Hero casually dropped the Digiegg into a transparent tube, and Iori watched as it travelled up, around and finally stopped above him in a silvery tank filled with clear liquid.

Hero looked giddy as he rushed over to press a small button on the control pad. Suddenly, the liquid in the tank glowed a brilliant gold, and the Digiegg shook uncontrollably. Iori gasped as the air around him vibrated faster and faster. Finally, the Digiegg shattered into hundreds of small, shining pieces. The tank opened and the Digiegg shards and the golden liquid fell upon him simultaneously.

Being without air, it was a bit hard to breathe, Iori noticed as he was enveloped by the liquid. The still glowing Digiegg pieces were still shaking, and they magnetically found their way to Iori. He shook his leg, trying to dislodge him, but seeing as he arms were still tied, he couldn't do much. Just as suddenly as it had come, the liquid drained through the holes in the floors. Iori collapsed to the floor, gasping in air. The Digiegg shards were still stubbornly clinging to him.

Faintly, the places where the Digiegg shards were plastered on him started to sting and throb. Faster and more evident now, Iori winced, itching anyplace he could reached with his hands tied. Finally, it got to the point where the pain grew into agony and Iori cried out, falling against the side of the capsule helplessly.

Without warning, the shards grew and glowed, covering his whole body and getting so bright Iori had to squeeze his eyes shut to avoid permanent damage to his vision. Odd sensations tinged the overwhelming flare of pain, but Iori hardly noticed them in comparison. Eventually, slowly, the pain subsided to a numb throb and Iori lay breathless on his side, curled up in a ball, trembling and looking very small and very weak.

"Good show lad. And what a pretty result too. One of my finer works I'll admit." Hero clapped, admiring his work.

Only then did Iori notice the changes. He looked in astonishment at his hands, now free of the ties that bound them, and at the long, blunt claws the replaced his fingers. Glancing down at his feet, he saw his sneakers badly torn and more grey claws sticking out of the holes. Experimentally, he wiggled his toes, stifling a gasp as the claws moved.

Were they… his? He bit his lip, yelping in pain as felt new, sharp canines dig into the soft flesh. He sat up abruptly, emitting another gasp of pain as he felt the thick, yellow tail protruding from his spine. Iori brought his hands up to his head, feeling hard frills sitting in place of his ears.

Examining his new features once more, Iori hung his head in defeat.

"What did you do to me..?" Iori murmured in a mixture of disbelief and horror. The response he got made him sick to his stomach.

_"__I enhanced you~"_


	3. Chapter 3

CH 3

"Three Days Grace?" Takeru scowled as he held the iPod he had snatched from Miyako. "Listening to this depressing stuff isn't going to make you feel any better, Miyako. In fact, it'll probably make it worse!"

Miyako hung her head.

"I know you're worried about Daisuke and Iori, but we've done all we can do. The police have been notified, and are probably out looking for them now. They're going to be fine." _I hope_, Takeru added silently.

"I… I don't know what to do. I feel so useless." Miyako mumbled.

"It's not your fault. Or your responsibility for that matter. Iori's like a puppy. He'll find his way home. Daisuke…" Takeru's eyes held an affectionate glint to them. He laughed. "I hardly think Daisuke of all people will give up so easily. Wherever they are, they'll be back."

Miyako sighed and looked at her feet.

"There are some things beyond your control Miyako. Things you can't change no matter how hard you try." Takeru looked her squarely in the eyes before handing her back her iPod, turning and walking away.

* * *

H-how _dare _he?! It was one thing to put _him_ through this, but Iori had so much potential! He had his _whole life_ ahead of him! Daisuke let out a low snarl, balling up his fists (as well as he could with his claws as long as there were) He whimpered, feeling his claws dig into his skin and fresh, warm blood leak onto the blinding white floor, staining it with droplets of scarlet.

He had to find a way out, get to Miyako and Ken and Takeru and Hikari before Hero did. Daisuke didn't know why Hero was doing all this. What was the point in kidnapping a couple of kids and fusing them with Digimon? And why was he only targeting Digidestined? And how on earth was he supposed to get out of here?

_The window._

Hero was distracted with Iori, laughing and applauding his own work; it was the perfect time to try and escape. Wait, he was chained up... Daisuke had tried many times to break the chains, but Hero had anticipated his strength, preparing the chains and handcuffs especially to contain him. Daisuke sighed, yanking on one of the cuffs with his claw, unsurprised when nothing happened.

Frantically, Daisuke tried to remember anything he'd learned about what to do in this type of situation. He shook his head angrily, willing the thoughts to come to him. Gritting his teeth, Daisuke ran a cuffed hand through his hair, stopping dead when he felt his claws dislodge a tiny bit of metal.

Cautiously, he lifted it down from his hair into his line of sight, eyes narrowing when he saw it was only a bobby pin. Hikari had probably put it there while he was sleeping on her couch. Daisuke let out an exasperated sigh, his hand moving to casually toss the pin away before, once again, freezing in place.

Wait…

His mind clicked. _Bobby pin. Handcuffs. Key. Escape._

That was enough for him. Struggling with his claws for a minute, he managed to bend the bobby pin into the shape of a key, carefully inserting it into the lock, twisting it in both directions before deciding on the right. With a barely audible click, the handcuffs opened.

As quietly as he could, Daisuke set down the handcuffs, along with the chains attached to it, grimacing as they touched the floor with a gentle clink. Hero still seemed to be distracted with Iori, so Daisuke, trembling, stood up, and crept towards the back wall. The walls were white, but they were still rough and hard with plenty of little crevices.

Perfect for climbing.

Abandoning all hope of silence, Daisuke leapt up onto the wall, scrabbling at it with his claws. He scrambled up as quickly as he could, hearing Hero's yell of distress and surprise from below. At last, he felt his claws wrap around the sill of the window. He pulled himself up, crouching at window sill, waving his thick tail back and forth.

There was a sound of smashing glass as Daisuke thrust his fist through the window, ignoring the pain of glass shards imbedding themselves into his bare skin as best he could. Paying no mind to the distance between himself and the ground below, Daisuke threw himself out of the window, still ignoring the pain as the jagged opening he had made caught on his shoulders, knees and tail.

All that was left behind was a thud as he hit the ground, bloodied clawmarks littering the wall he'd climbed, a gaping Iori and a furious Hero.

* * *

"Ken? Ken!" There was a very faint voice in the back of Ken's head, telling him to snap out of it. It sounded distinctively like Hikari.

"ICHIJOUJI!" Ken sat up with a start. Above him hung the fuzzy images of Miyako, Hikari and Takeru. Ken rubbed his eyes, yawning.

"You know that rubbing your eyes simulates a reaction that makes you _even sleepier?" _Takeru teased, smirking. "Since when did _you_ fall asleep during the day? Unheard of."

"Shut your face Takaishi. I-I was only-" he yawned again "resting my eyes."

"Resting your eyes for a good three hours."

"Nngh… s-s-shuddup… I-I-I-" Ken yawned.

"Are you okay Ken? You've yawned a lot and you've only just woken up." Miyako was more anxious than normal, which was justified seeing as two her friends had spontaneously disappeared.

"I-I'm fine…I just feel a bit weird…"

"Weird? Where?" Hikari questioned.

"M-my head… It's spinning. And I still can't see you all clearly… I-It's like you're only a mirage created by the light. You're all fuzzy and out of focus…" Ken yawned again. Out of nowhere, His head hit the ground and he whimpered, curling in on himself automatically and clutching his hands to his chest. Then, he was sleeping.

_Sleeping._

What.

The.

Heck.

"Ken!" Miyako crouched next to him. "What's going on?!"

"Narcolepsy." It was Takeru's voice. He sounded quite proud of himself for figuring it out. "It's a condition the affects one's sleeping patterns. They can nod off at any time without warning."

"And you know this how?" Hikari raised an eyebrow.

"Jyou. He knows a lot about these kinds of things." Takeru shrugged. "I must have accidentally listened in on a conversation of his or something." Hikari rolled her eyes, but looked worriedly at Ken.

"And how does one develop this narcolepsy?" she put a hand at her hip and looked to Takeru.

"How should I know?" Hikari gave him a look, before crouching with Miyako who was still beside Ken.

"Is he going to be okay?" Miyako's voice was soft.

"Yeah, it isn't like a disease or something. He's not sick. It's a condition. It could happen to anyone."

"A disease could infect anyone too you know." Hikari pointed out stubbornly, Takeru huffed.

"You know what I meant…"

"I'm tired…" It was Ken. He was looking at them with blank, clouded eyes. The normal deep indigo was a faded violet color now.

"Ken! You're up! Are you okay?" Miyako said.

Ken just blinked emotionlessly at her. Takeru groaned.

"Well this is just great. What now?"

"You treat this like it's a joke! It's serious!" Miyako sounded very angry, obviously not eager to lose another one of her friends. She promptly took Ken by the hand, hoisting him up onto his feet and stalking off with him.

"Where are we going?" he asked.

"My house. My family will understand I'm sure. We'll say it's a slumber party. You guys come too if you care about the situation at all." Miyako glared over her shoulder.

"I don't do 'slumber parties.' A-ah! Hikari!" Hikari had grabbed Takeru's hand and was pulling him along after Miyako with a determined look on her face.


	4. Chapter 4

CH 4

"It's a dovegeon." Takeru explained, holding up a picture of a disfigured bird creature. He was sitting on a pillow on the floor of Miyako's room.

"Dove…geon?" Ken looked at the paper with interest.

"It's a pigeon and a dove. It's quite majestic." Takeru smirked at Miyako's disapproving glare.

"Where can you find one of these dovegeons?" Takeru blinked. Semi-Amnesiac-Whatever-The-Heck-Was-Wrong-With-Him-Ken was incredibly gullible it seemed.

"The magical island of Gertorhim, obviously. How can you not know these things?" Takeru rolled his eyes mockingly; Ken looked at Miyako.

"Why… why don't I know these things? I feel like I should know things… but it's just blank. There's nothing there."

Miyako still had same helpless look on her face that she had when talking about Iori and Daisuke.

"Maybe he has, like, a trigger word or something! Something that'll bring back memories!" Hikari suggested.

"Maybe. What's something that made Ken happy?" Miyako asked thoughtfully, looking at the ceiling.

"Wormmon." Hikari added. Ken looked at her expressionlessly.

"Nope. Hmmm…"

"Osamu!" Takeru shouted, snickering mockingly. Ken's head snapped up. His eyes were wide and sad.

"Osamu… nii-san…" he whimpered, burying his head in his arms.

"Well that worked.. -ahh!" Takeru held his cheek where Hikari had slapped him. "Gimme a break, at least I got him to remember _something_." He only got an unappreciative glare in response.

"Ken… are you okay?" Miyako put her hand on his shoulder. He didn't answer, but just sat there huddling in on himself.

* * *

"G-GET AWAY YOU M-MONSTER!" Daisuke traded in his two-legged jog for a surprisingly faster, four-legged sprint, racing away, disheveled, from the old couple that had had the misfortune of discovering him. The concrete wasn't exactly kind to the palms of his already bloodied hands, but the pain barely stung in comparison to the words the old man had shouted.

_Monster._

Yeah, Daisuke supposed that was what he should address himself by now. He was hardly human anymore, he thought bitterly as he absently listened to the sharp clicking of pearly white claws on the hard ground.

_Now isn't the time for wallowing in self-pity, you've got a job to do_, Daisuke's mind reminded him sternly. _If anything, feel bad for Iori! The poor kid's still there with that whacked up old psychopath who wants to poke and prod him like a lab rat._

Guilt flooded through him as he imagined Iori still there, at that disgustingly clean white test facility. The thought left him in an instant as he rammed himself head-on into a garbage can (which, he might add, had NOT been there a minute earlier). The sudden noise and sensation of toppling over startled him, and he lay there for a moment, dazed, on the ground next to the garbage can, which was now on its side.

Daisuke leapt to his feet hurriedly, realizing with a start that such a loud noise had probably woken up the residents of the house he was next to. He scampered into a one of the hedges at the front of the house in a panicked rush, hoping beyond hope that he wouldn't be found. Sharp pain coursed up his spine as his tail, already cut up as it was, caught painfully on the branches of the hedge. Trying to ignore the hot burning sensations from both his tail and hands, he frantically wrenched his tail into the leafy interior of the hedge.

As expected, the door to the house opened, and a young man came out, holding a baseball bat in one hand and a flashlight in the other. He stepped down the short set of wooden stairs leading down from the porch warily, eyeing everything around him with suspicion.

"Come out!" he yelled, uncertainly. "Whoever you are, come out now!" Daisuke thought briefly about coming out of the hedge, but quickly decided that that was the greater of two evils in the current situation. The man was certain to either whack him with the baseball bat or just yell and chase him off.

He might even call the police, which definitely wouldn't sit well with him, considering if they actually found him he'd be no doubt handed over to some weird laboratory like the one he'd just escaped from. Having it run by certified scientists wouldn't make it any less unpleasant.

Eventually, the man reentered his home, still glancing around him cautiously. Daisuke let out a breath of relief, realizing just a second too late that it was a fatal mistake.

* * *

"Darn that boy… I should've known he'd eventually find a way out. Why on earth did I think it'd be a good idea to put a window in?" Hero was muttered angrily to himself, watching as one of his men cleaned up the broken glass that littered the floor. Chains clinked as the broom swept over them, collecting bits of glass, and the sound only made Hero angrier.

Iori watched quietly and curiously from his seat within the capsule, wondering what it had been that had escaped.

"I'm afraid I'll have to postpone the introduction, seeing as the good-for-nothing rat got loose. I'll have him back soon, though, I assure you. If need be I'll track him down myself." Hero clenched his fists and glared at the broken window.

Wait…

Hero eyed the bloody clawprints lining the walls and the scarlet stains adorning the sharp edges of the remaining glass that made up the window.

The creature was injured, albeit the wounds were hardly fatal; if they got infected, he'd be unable to fight back with his usual fever, if at that point he could fight back at all. A thoughtful grin made its way to his face as his mind subconsciously plotted out the rest on its own.

Hero reluctantly turned his attention back to Iori, noticing the curiosity gleaming in the boy's eyes.

"You want to know who it is I'm referring to hmm? My masterpiece's true identity?" Iori's eyes widened, and he looked away from Hero and at the wall where the creature had been chained. "Well I'll give you a hint, since I'm feeling generous." Hero paused. "Someone you used to know."

Iori's eyes narrowed regretfully, almost as though he understood what exactly Hero had meant. Though no recognition passed through his eyes, he curled his knees to his chest and held himself together firmly, as though if he let go he'd suddenly fall apart.

Hero sighed happily, eyes glittering with appreciation as he smeared his fingers in the sticky red substance dripping down the wall. He stared at it for a moment, rubbing his fingers together, feeling the thick, still-warm sensation that came with the stains of crimson on his skin.

Iori only watched with an odd feeling that things were about to get much, much worse.

* * *

Takeru listened to the even breathing of Hikari beside him in comparison to the unsteady, abnormally quiet breaths the Ken let out on his other side.

Miyako had claimed her bed, graciously allowing everyone else the floor, kind as she was. It was hard to tell someone was even inside that lump of sheets, it was as still as a rock. Takeru wondered absently how she slept with her head covered; it must be hard to breathe within that hot, stuffy mass of cloth.

Takeru's eyes softened, wondering why he was still awake and everyone else had gone to sleep. He was worried, of course, about Daisuke and Iori, but Miyako and Hikari were too. Much more seriously than him, he supposed. The only reason he WASN'T blowing up about it, was that he had a firm belief that Daisuke and Iori had been taken to the same place. And if that were the case, Daisuke definitely wouldn't go down without a fight, and, knowing him, he'd somehow find a way to protect Iori in the process.

Sighing into his pillow, Takeru turned over and held his hands to his chest, falling into a rough, uneasy sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

CH 5

"I knew someone was there!" Bright artificial light flooded Daisuke's vision as he looked in horror at the open door and the man standing half inside half out. "W-what _are_ you?"

"Grrahhh… Rrrgg…" The growls were out of Daisuke's mouth before he could stop them, and he quickly backed into the darkness, away from the area illuminated by the flashlight.

The man made small, horrified noises, backing into the house hastily and fumbled with the phone.

"H-hello? Animal Control? Yes. Yes. I'm not sure, it's got long claws and it growled at me! 408 West Cale Road. Please hurry! It looks angry!"

Daisuke scoffed as he ran from the house. His claws were long, but not sharp; blunt if anything. His growl was hardly intimidating. He sounded like a confused puppy. Angry? That's rich; he'd backed away, not jumped the man and torn him to pieces.

From the edge of his vision, Daisuke caught sight of blinking lights. Animal Control.

_Crap._

He picked up speed, falling onto all fours and leaping haphazardly into an alley between a Laundromat and a McDonald's. Huddling behind a dumpster, he breathed as soft as possible, peeking out every now and then to check for lights. After the third time, he'd thought they were gone, and cautiously stepped out from behind the dumpster.

An empty paper McDonald's bag crunched beneath Daisuke's claws and he stopped dead.

"What was that?"

Daisuke didn't dare move.

"It came from over here," flashlights flickered, steadily coming closer. "Right- I FOUND IT!" Daisuke blinked feverishly as bright light covered him. His instincts told him to run, but he was frozen in place. Stomping footsteps and yelling accompanied with more flashlights flew into his line of sight.

Cold plastic looped around his neck and he was yanked to the ground, tail thrashing. He dug his claws into crumbling concrete and yelped helplessly as he was dragged away.

* * *

Takeru woke up gradually. Everything was fuzzy at first and he just wanted to close his eyes and fall back asleep. There were voices, soft, too soft to understand. He picked out words subconsciously, still believing he was in a dream.

"Escaped-"

"Like this one-"

"Fun with him-"

Wait… Miyako's walls were cornflower blue not white…

That was when he woke up fully.

Thick ropes bond his legs and arms together. He was leaning precariously against a wall, rough and uncomfortable against his back. Two figures were in his line of vision. The first was a man he didn't know. The second was shoved into a cramped dog crate and Takeru couldn't make out his face.

The man turned.

"Ah he's awake." The man who'd been talking to the boy in the crate began walking towards Takeru. "Good to see you up lad! How you feeling?"

"Who are you." Takeru spat. His voice was flat and laced with venom.

"Tsk tsk. Play nice if you value your dignity."

"Tch." Takeru swept the ground with his legs, effectively tripping the man. He stumbled before catching his balance.

"You little brat!" the man snarled, kicking Takeru's body against the wall. A yelp came from the boy in the crate. Takeru's breathing quickened. He caught the man with his legs again, knocking him off his feet.

"Wrong move kid."

The man kicked him in the side repeatedly, grinning wider with each gasp and cry that escaped the Takeru's lips.

"TAKERU-SAN!" Takeru was shocked not only by the sudden absence of the man's boot in his side but also by the familiarity of the voice that'd called his name.

"I-Iori…?" Takeru gasped out. The boy in the crate, Iori, was sobbing helplessly, yanking at the grate that separated him from Takeru.

"Takeru-san, Takeru-san." Iori cried.

"How touching. A reunion between friends." The man smirked. "Unfortunately I'll have to break up the happy moment." The man produced an orange and white Digiegg. He dragged Takeru by his hair towards the glass capsules.

"Takeru-san! Takeru-san he's going to-" The man delivered a swift kick to the dog crate and Iori toppled over with a whimper.

Takeru let out a small cry as the man came up with a fistful of golden hair, shoving him into the capsule.

The process was mostly the same as Iori's, but with less pained cries, as Takeru merely grit his teeth and squeezed his eyes shut.

"Hmm… that was certainly unexpected…" the man was glancing thoughtfully at Takeru. Takeru glared at him with such vigor he almost flinched. Small orange wings were pressed against his golden hair, his white hat lying tattered beside him. Larger orange wings lay motionless on either side of him, folded smoothly. He was baring pointed canines at the man.

"A pretty sight to behold nonetheless." The man smiled.

"I'll kill you." Takeru whispered, cold as steel. The man grinned.

"That is, if your escapee friend doesn't first." He laughed. "He's a handful."

"But, you wouldn't want to bloody your pretty wings would you?"

Takeru's face turned from ice-cold defiance to pure shock. He turned his head, the small orange wings rising up in alarm at the sight of the folded wings on his back. He opened one gently, letting out a noise that was a mix of wonder and horror.

"Takeru-san…" Iori sobbed from his crate.

"You know what?" The man looked slightly unnerved at the steely, defiant tone in Takeru's voice.

"I think these wings would look better in red."

* * *

Everything was pitch black, there was no noise apart from Miyako's ragged breathing. She was standing on nothing, and the sensation made her dizzy and disoriented.

"Hello?" she called, fear lacing her voice. "Is anyone here?"

"Miyako-san!" there was a little voice, far away, coming from an unknown direction.

"Iori? Iori!" Miyako sounded happy and relieved and scared all at once. "Where are you?"

"Miyako-san…" the voice was a little louder, and it sounded sad, disappointed. "Why won't you come find me Miyako-san?"

Miyako was shocked into silence. She screamed mentally: _I want to find you! I want to come save you Iori!_

"I thought… I thought you cared about me… Miyako-san…" the voice was choking back sobs now. It broke Miyako's heart.

_No. No! I do care about you! _

"Miyako-san…" It was Daisuke's voice now. "I know you hate me… I know you think I deserve this…"

_I don't! I don't Daisuke! I don't hate you!_

"I know you think I'm better off dead."

Then there was silence. There was nothing left to say.

Miyako woke with a start, cold sweat dripping down her face. Her breathing was uneven, loud. She glanced down at the bodies of her sleeping friends. Ken… Hikari… Take-

Miyako's breath caught in her throat. She coughed violently, sobbing and trying to take in breathes.

"No… No! NO! No. No…" she coughed and cried and repeated the word over and over again, as though saying it repeatedly would rewind time. Undo the truth..

Takeru was gone.

* * *

"Takeru-san!" Iori hit the grate of the dog crate repeatedly, doing nothing but make a small dent in the metal. He dug at the plastic of the crate with his back claws, not causing any significant damage.

Takeru was lashing out at the glass capsule with small, sharp black claws. He'd ripped viciously through the ropes that had held his arms behind his back and his legs together. His growling was loud and threatening, though Hero held his ground.

"Almost as violent as the first one was!" He laughed good-naturedly. He applauded as Takeru tore at the glass, doing nothing but make shallow scratches and a horrible nails-on-chalkboard noise.

"Shut up you sick creep! I'll kill you!" Takeru was yelling now, gritting his teeth and breathing heavily because of the pain in his side.

"I think you've mentioned that." Hero laughed again. Takeru went back to snarling. He kicked at the glass, yelping suddenly and crumpling to the ground.

He clutched his side, pulling up his shirt and glaring at the offending bruise that covered his side. It was already pretty dark; purple and blue. Iori winced at the sight of it.

"Hmmm… whoops, I suppose I've caused you some discomfort haven't I?" Hero laughed at Takeru's angry gaze.

"You… you-" Takeru coughed violently, letting his shirt fall back down and collapsing in a heap. "I swear I'll kill you." His voice was slicked with hatred.

Hero only chuckled and called in a grunt with a snap of his fingers. The man hefted Takeru's weakly struggling body out of the capsule and tossed him unceremoniously into a dog crate beside Iori's, slamming the door shut with a bang.

"You two must be ever so lonely… I know! I'll get you a friend!" Hero grinned at Takeru and Iori's matching horrified expressions.

"You touch Hikari your freaking dead old man." Takeru's voice was no more than a hoarse whisper, but the ice-cold, deadly tone made Iori shiver.

"I thought I was dead anyway, with all the empty death threats you're making." Hero chuckled; slapping a switch on the wall and making the lights go dark.

"Sleep well boys."


	6. Chapter 6

CH 6

"What do ya think it is?"

Daisuke groaned, rubbing his head, noticing for the first time that Taichi's-his-goggles were absent. A snarl escaped him; that old creep had taken his most prized possession. Blood. Would. Spill.

"It made a noise. Do you think it's afraid of us?" A chubby man with a goatee and a baseball cap looked at him suspiciously. Black eyes and a less-than-full head of greasy, thin black hair.

"Well of course it is ya idiot, you'd be too if someone choked ya half-to-death and threw ya in a cage." A thinner man with dark sunglasses and a bomber jacket spoke with an accent that slurred his voice ever so slightly. He looked American, blonde and suntanned.

"Touché."

_Argh I wish I could speak._

"Should we approach it?"

"_You_ can. I'd rather keep all my limbs thank ya very much."

Daisuke snickered at that. Now, who was afraid of who again?

"It has a sense of humour."

Daisuke nodded vigorously. Maybe if they saw that he wasn't a bloody animal they'd stop treating him like a tiger poised to strike.

"It nodded!"

"Can ya understand what we're saying? Two barks for yes."

Daisuke glared.

"It understands us all right."

"What's your name? Do you even have one?"

Daisuke let out a string of sad growls, trying to convey the fact that he couldn't speak to the less-than-intelligent men.

"Can ya talk?"

Daisuke shook his head.

"Ahhh so that's why you didn't utter a word to anyone this whole time. I thought you were taking the 'you have the right to remain silent' thing seriously. Well, I mean if that even applies to animals."

Daisuke growled at him.

"J-just kidding! Well, on that subject, what are you? Are you a human?"

Daisuke nodded.

"Well what's up with the tail?"

Daisuke reached through the crisscrossing cage grate with a claw, latching onto the lock and tearing it off with a single jerk. The men shivered visibly and held up their hands like cowardly burglars caught red-handed. Daisuke pushed open the cage door calmly, listening to the loud, slightly creepy whining sound it made.

He hopped out nonchalantly, landing a foot or so below onto the cheap tile floor with a click. The men clung to each other, shuddering and backing away at a slow but steady pace as though Daisuke would jump on them roaring at any second.

Daisuke surveyed the place, scanning for a laptop and finding one perched atop a pile of books on the coffee table. He tapped the power button, grinning as it whirred to life, a happy bunny rabbit wallpaper smiling at him from the screen. He brought up a note application with a couple clicks and tested the keys with his claws, unsure if they'd hold. Fortunately they did and Daisuke quickly keyed in his first message.

_I come in peace._

He held up four fingers like a V in a mock alien salute.

The men immediately relaxed, rushing over to the laptop.

_Yes I'm human. No I'm not an animal. My name's Motomiya Daisuke, you know, the kid that mysteriously went missing? That's me. This old weirdo kidnapped me for human experimentation as well as one of my friends; he's after the rest of them too._

"The heck? Human experimentation? You're pulling my leg."

Daisuke shook his head.

"Well why is this guy after you and your friends specifically?"

_Dunno. It's most likely because we're… well… different then other people. _

There was a loud crash from the room beyond and Daisuke's ears pricked up, twitching. He punched in a few words quickly.

_Gotta go. Bad people. I can smell it._

"But-"

Daisuke cut him off with a growl, jamming a claw into the power button and making a beeline for the open window at the side of the room. He squeezed himself through the opening, yelping at the reminder of his open wounds from the searing flare of pain up his arms, legs and tail.

The moment he jumped from the window, the door slammed open, men in black suits crowding in and scanning the immediate vicinity.

"Where is it."

"Turned out just to be a dog. Family came and picked it up a couple of minutes ago. Ya just missed 'em." Daisuke breathed a sigh of relief.

The men huffed and left slowly, still sending the two men suspicious looks.

"What happened to that?" A man pointed to the smoking laptop, its power button smashed to bits.

"Ehh… we were swordfighting with forks and uhh….."

"Right."

* * *

Hikari woke to sobbing. She sat bolt upright, staring intently at a shivering bundle of sheets. Ken beside her was already awake, oblivious and preoccupied with a crossword puzzle from a book he'd found in his backpack.

"Ken." Hikari found herself saying.

"Mmm?" Ken looked over with his hair still matted to one side of his face from sleeping on it.

"Is… Miyako okay?"

"The girl with the glasses?" He tilted his head.

"…Yes? You say it like you don't know her…" Now Hikari was confused.

"I don't." His eyes didn't hold even the least speck of remembrance.

Hikari looked at her hands, glancing once again at Miyako's huddling form, before looking over at Takeru hoping he'd have an answer-

Takeru…?

Ruffled, empty sheets and a pillow with a head-shaped indent met her gaze.

* * *

Iori tried to sleep, but was too sick to even close his eyes. After seeing Takeru like that… he… Iori put his head in his hands; he was curled in the back of the dog crate, looking at the floor between his legs, examining the shallow clawmarks. His tail lay beside him, twitching of its own accord.

Takeru could be seen through the grated windows of the crate, strewn awkwardly in the cramped cage, his head-wings flapping restlessly in his sleep. One of his batlike wings had shifted to cover his body like a blanket. Iori squeezed his eyes shut, burying his head in his knees and curling his tail around his feet.

"I hate this…" Iori choked out softly, tears forming at the corners of his eyes. He shook his head, wincing as one of his frills caught on the ridged roof of the crate. He yanked it free with a grunt, staring at the penny-sized hole it left behind.

Of course! The roof was the softest part of the crate, but he never would have thought of it before. Cautiously, Iori dug his claws into the roof and jerked it to one side, wincing at the rather loud ripping noise it made, but at the same time marveling at the four jagged tears in the plastic.

Reluctantly, Iori repeated the action, but slower, breathing a sigh of relief as the ripping noise softened to a dull 'kkrrrr'. He continued shredding the plastic until a sizeable, ragged opening formed. Iori slipped his body through, stepping from the top of his crate to the top of Takeru's. He created a hole in the top of the crate for Takeru, becoming annoyed rather quickly at the time it took to rip apart the plastic while simultaneously keeping as silent as possible.

Iori nudged Takeru's shoulder, jumping in alarm when Takeru woke up suddenly.

"I'LL KILL YOU OLD-" Iori clamped his claws over Takeru's mouth, squeaking in surprise when Takeru's raked his claws down Iori's arm. The tears from earlier started up again, blood running down his arm from long, ragged scratches. Takeru's blue eyes widened when he realized that it wasn't Hero, but Iori who'd woken him. And just as certainly, it wasn't Hero he'd clawed, but Iori.

"Iori…" Takeru looked in horror at the angry red marks running with crimson liquid, then at Iori's pain-stricken face, eyes squeezed shut, claws covering his mouth and muting his whimpers. "Iori I'm so sorry!"

"It's-It's okay..." He choked between his claws. "…Takeru-san. It doesn't hurt all that bad…"

Takeru's was heartbroken at the kid's brave words. Only then did he notice that Iori had torn gaps in both their crates, the one in Takeru's just big enough for him to squeeze through.

"Your claws must be sharp…" Takeru'd said it mostly to himself, but Iori's surprised look told him that he hadn't said it in his mind like he'd originally intended to.

After the initial shock, Iori became slightly flustered, his cheeks heating up.

"N-no. They're blunt; the ceiling's just soft is all…" He muttered, the blood from his arm beginning to clot up.

"Really…?" Takeru tested the theory by carving his initials into the roof, surprised when his claws ran through it like a knife through warm butter. "Wow it is really soft…!" Iori nodded, smiling.

"We… should probably go soon."He whispered.

"How?"

"Well…" Iori glanced at the still broken window. "I saw another test subject escape through that window. It was daring, but he made it fine, just a few scrapes on his knees and hands. Hero implied that I knew him as well. He said something about "Bursting Friendship"..."

"You think it would work?"

"The other test subject had pretty long claws like mine. Your's are pretty short. He used the ridges in the walls as clawholds. I don't know if it would work for you Takeru-san…"

"Never know till ya try!"

Takeru snuck over to the wall, gripping the wall's lumpy surface under his palms, hefting himself up easily.

"Huh. Not as hard are you make it out to be, eh Iori?" Takeru grinned and continued climbing, Iori following suit.

"I guess not." Iori smiled and yelped softly as one of Takeru's wings slapped him in the face.

"Whoops! Sorry Iori!"

"It's fine."

They both made it up fine, unharmed.

"Quite a drop..."

"Yeah."

"Hold my hand."

"Huh?" Iori stared at Takeru's outstretched hand. He swallowed, and grabbed it.


	7. Chapter 7

CH 7

Daisuke's eyes shifted from place to place, nervously avoiding anything that might make noise. He'd had enough trouble for one night. Daisuke traced the treeline, the wind whipping across his clothes; dirty, worn, ripped in multiple places. His wounds had crusted over, but they still stung faintly if he concentrated on them. He was surprised he'd made it this far without suffering infection.

Light shown from ahead, bright and unwavering. Daisuke had to halt to cover his eyes. Where had that light come from? It certainly hadn't been there before. Gradually, Daisuke lowered his claws, leaping off into the trees and taking shelter in an oak, before glancing back in the direction the light was shining from.

A girl that looked about seventeen with fiery orange hair and an irritated scowl plastered over her face was walking with an exceptionally bright flashlight clasped in her hands. She was looking left and right in turn seemingly searching for something. Daisuke shrank deeper into the foliage, claws sunk into the wood of the tree.

When she stopped suddenly, Daisuke was sure he was done for. She glanced vaguely in his direction, and, much to Daisuke's relief, continued walking. Once she was out of sight, he hopped down from the tree branches, and began walking in the opposite direction that she had headed.

Daisuke's ears twitched when he heard footsteps approaching at an unnervingly fast pace. He knew that the clicking of his claws on the pavement would give away his location, but the only other choice was to stay put and let whoever it was find him. So he promptly gave up hopes of silence and raced off towards the forest again, the footsteps following.

Daisuke struggled through the thick debris, shaking tendrils of ferns off his tail and back claws. The footsteps were hot on his heels, gaining speed and crunching unceremoniously through dead leaves and twigs. Daisuke stopped abruptly, back claws caught under a conveniently placed root. He fell forwards, throwing his hands out in front of him to catch himself.

"I've never seen an animal do _that_ before…" a female voice pondered aloud. Daisuke turned his head to see the girl with the fiery orange hair. Daisuke was extremely tempted to scare her off with a snarl or two, since he couldn't actually retort with words. Instead, he held his temper and waited to see what she did next.

"Come here boy! I've got some tasty treats here for you~!" She held out a handful of meaty dog biscuits. Daisuke shuddered. Geez he wasn't a dog! Carefully, he dislodged his claws from under the root, and rose to his full, meager height. He rested his claws on his hips and looked her straight in her forest green eyes, scowling. Ears erect, tail still.

"Eh? Y-you can stand up… g-good puppy?" the girl backed away slowly, laughing nervously, eyebrows upraised.

Daisuke turned and began walking again, deeper into the woodland, before he gracelessly tripped, not able to catch himself with his hands this time. He turned to see that he had not tripped, but rather the green-eyed girl had latched onto his leg.

_Oh come on… how much longer is she going to bother me? _Daisuke growled at her and she laughed. _Laughed_. Her eyes were brighter than before, glowing with an emerald fire.

"I don't give up that easy dragon-boy~" Daisuke scoffed. _Dragon-boy? _Daisuke growled again, shaking his leg irritably. The girl only clasped it tighter, using that time to grab his other leg. While he was thrashing, the girl grinned and hoisted Daisuke over her shoulder. He yelped in surprise and froze.

"Geez you weigh like nothing!" She marveled. "What are you made of, marshmallows?" Daisuke huffed as she carried him off.

* * *

Ken tapped Hikari's shoulder.

"What's a six letter word for hope?"

"TAKERU!"

"I was thinking 'expect' but…"

Miyako's cries halted and she peeked out from beneath her blanket, glancing anxiously at Takeru's bedding. Hikari looked at Ken, then at Miyako, then at Takeru's cold, empty sheets and was surprised when she felt tears welling at her eyes.

"How did… where… T-Takeru?" Hikari managed, before collapsing onto her pillow and letting her tears flow, not only for Takeru, but for Daisuke, and Iori. Ken looked at her for a moment, before going back to his crossword puzzle, scratching 'Takeru' into the boxes.

Miyako almost went over there and slapped him, before thinking better of it. He'd almost been reverted to a six year old, and you couldn't get angry at a six year old for not understanding a situation like this.

"I-I'm sorry Hikari-chan." Miyako said, quickly collecting herself and wiping her tears with the sleeve of her shirt.

Hikari quieted, looking red-eyed at Miyako. Ken only stared into space thinking of a five letter word for surprise.

"We need to get out of here and do something. I'm tired of just sitting around and wallowing in angst!" Hikari shook the teardrops off her cheeks and slammed her fist into her pillow with a muffled 'fmp'.

The words caught Ken's attention and he shot up, practically glowing.

"Can we go to the playground? Pleeeaaaasssseee?" Ken put on violet puppy-dog eyes.

Miyako melted at once, Takeru, Daisuke and Iori pushed to the corners of her mind temporarily. Hikari wasn't surprised, seeing as Miyako had long had a cutesy crush on Ken.

"Yeah of course~!" Miyako squealed. She faltered after she considered Ken's words. "A-and why, might I ask, do you want to go there?"

"Because it's fun! Don't you want to climb on the monkey bars with me? And play on the swingset?" Ken whipped out the watery, shiny eyes again.

"O-okay…" Miyako was less sure this time, but she still couldn't resist the pleads and begs. Ken lit up immediately.

"Yayyyy! Thank you... uh… Miyako-chan?"

Miyako nodded.

"Ken… chan…" She hesitated with the honorific, unsure how he'd take to it.

"Ken-chan…" Ken whispered. It was barely audible. "T-that's what he would call me… W-wor…" Ken paused, looking confused. "…I…forgot…"

"Wormmon…" Hikari breathed. Ken didn't hear her.

* * *

"Push me Miyako-chan!" Ken laughed, the swing he was seated on slowing down. Miyako nodded hesitantly, moving over and pushing the blunette on the back, fingers lingering on the ends of his indigo hair. Hikari was sucking on a piece of rock candy, seated on a bench nearby.

"Miyako-chan…"

"Hmm?"

"What's wrong?" Ken tilted his head like a puppy.

"Nothing's wrong Ken, let's go play on the slide now!" Miyako faked a smile. Ken looked confused for a second then sad, like he was fighting with himself. But just as quickly as it had began, it stopped and Ken grinned.

"Okay!"

Both were oblivious to the empty bench and the pigeon pecking happily at an abandoned piece of rock candy lying on the sidewalk.

* * *

Iori squeaked in surprise as Takeru unceremoniously grabbed him in his arms and fell from the window sill, landing hard on his knees. Takeru grimaced and set him down.

"Takeru-san!" Iori, eyes wide, found Takeru's hand and tried to help him up. The older male proved a bit too heavy for Iori, but Takeru eventually stood up on his own and looked around, ignoring the bloody mess of his knees.

On the ground near his feet, a set of pilot goggles were strewn across a field of broken glass, the lens amazingly intact. Takeru bent and picked them up, turning them over in his hands. They were speckled with dry blood; blood also splattering the ground outside the window.

"It seems the other test subject didn't get away entirely unscathed. In fact, it looks like he took quite a beating. The jagged glass most likely." Takeru said thoughtfully.

"So he's injured then? I wonder if he's okay…" Iori sounded sad.

"Wait… Iori look at these goggles. Don't they look familiar?"

"They're Daisuke's!" Iori exclaimed.

"I thought they looked like Taichi's goggles! I'd know them anywhere!" Takeru turned them over in his hands.

"Bursting Friendship… That's what Lighdramon says when he armour evolves!" Iori realized.

"That must mean that old psychopath fused Daisuke with Lighdramon!"

Iori nodded.

"How are we supposed to find him? He could be anywhere in Odaiba, heck he could be anywhere in _Japan _for all we know." Takeru chewed his lip. He started moving forwards, and, suddenly aware for the searing pain in his legs, grimaced and stopped.

"Ta-Takeru-san? Your legs…" Iori crouched down, tearing with some struggle a sizeable strip of cloth from his sleeve, and held the fabric to Takeru's wounds, despite the blonde's weak efforts to stop him.

"You ruined your shirt for me…" Takeru murmured.

"And you ruined your knees for me. Now we're even." Takeru only grumbled at the younger boy's logic.

* * *

Hero mentally cursed, seeing the shredded dog crates and the hardly noticeable blood trail from the crates to the window. He face palmed at his lack for forethought, honestly, you'd have thought he would've gotten the window space filled in or at least blocked after what happened last time.

Well, at least now he had the girl, and he figured out from the beginning that blondie was attached to her, so she'd make perfect bait. The smallish boy, Iori if memory served, seemed to follow blondie like a dog follows its master. He'd no doubt manage to smuggle his way into coming with blondie to save the damsel in distress.

Now the only thing he had to worry about was that nuisance of a masterpiece that seemed to a_ttract_ trouble. If only he knew where that idiot Motomiya was, the rest of this would be a _lot_ easier. The other girl wasn't a worry, but Hero was concerned about the supposed genius Ichijouji; if he figured out way to counter the transformation, or even reverse it completely, the entire thing would be for naught.

That brought him back to the girl at hand, and the problem that was her being nearly as aggressive as the boys. Hero had had her restrained, but she quickly proved herself irritatingly and surprisingly strong. The dog crates wouldn't do, seeing as the other two brats had ripped them open, and especially now with her claws it wouldn't be a problem for her to do the same.

Hero guessed he'd just have to find another way to hold her until her winged freak in shining armour came to rescue her.


End file.
